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Anxiety is a common and natural emotion, but it can also cause physical symptoms, such as shaking and sweating. Anxiety disorders can affect daily life but can often improve with treatment.
What is Anxiety?
Anxiety symptoms & signs
There are several different anxiety disorders, which can present with different symptoms. Typical symptoms of anxious feelings include the following:
- restlessness
- uncontrollable feelings of worry
- increased irritability
- difficulty concentrating
- sleep difficulties
While many people will occasionally experience these symptoms in daily life, people with a general anxiety disorder (GAD) will experience them at persistent or extreme levels.
The best use of creativity is imagination. The worst use of creativity is anxiety.
The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.
Types of Anxiety disorders
GAD
This chronic disorder involves excessive, long-lasting anxiety and worries about nonspecific life events, objects, and situations. GAD is the most common anxiety disorder, and people with it are not always able to identify the cause of their anxiety.Panic disorder
Brief or sudden attacks of intense terror and apprehension characterize this panic disorder. These attacks can lead to shaking, confusion, dizziness, nausea, and breathing difficulties. Panic attacks tend to occur and escalate rapidly. Panic disorders usually occur after frightening experiences or prolonged stress but may also occur without a trigger.Specific phobia
This is a fear and avoidance of a particular object or situation. Phobias are not like other anxiety disorders, as they relate to a specific cause. A person with a phobia might acknowledge fear as illogical or extreme but remain unable to control feelings of anxiety around the trigger. Triggers for a phobia range from situations and animals to everyday objects.Agoraphobia
This is a fear and avoidance of places, events, or situations from which it may be difficult to escape or where help would not be available in emergencies. People often misunderstand this condition as a phobia of open spaces and the outdoors. A person with agoraphobia may fear leaving home or using elevators and public transport.Selective mutism
Some children experience this form of anxiety, in which they cannot speak in certain places or contexts, even though they may have excellent verbal communication skills around familiar people.Social anxiety disorder
This is a fear of adverse judgment from others in social situations or of public embarrassment. Social anxiety disorder includes a range of feelings, such as stage fright, a fear of intimacy, and anxiety around humiliation and rejection.Separation anxiety disorder
High anxiety levels after separation from a person or place that provides feelings of security or safety characterize separation anxiety disorder. Separation anxiety is most common in young children but can affect people of all ages.Causes of anxiety
The causes of anxiety disorders are complicated. Many might occur at once, some may lead to others, and some might not lead to an anxiety disorder unless another is present.
Possible causes include:
- environmental stressors, such as relationship problems or family issues
- genetics
- medical factors, such as disease symptoms or the effects of a medication
- substance withdrawal
Treatment of anxiety
Self-treatment
Sometimes, a person can treat an anxiety disorder at home without clinical supervision. However, this may not be effective for severe or long-term anxiety disorders. There are several exercises and actions to help a person cope with milder, more focused, or shorter-term anxiety disorders, including:- stress management
- relaxation techniques
- maintaining support networks
- physical exercise
Counseling
A standard way of treating anxiety is psychological counselling. This can include cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), psychotherapy, or a combination of therapies. CBT is a type of psychotherapy that aims to recognize and change harmful thought patterns that form the foundation of anxious and troublesome feelings.Medications
A person can support anxiety management with several types of medication. Medicines that might control some physical and mental symptoms include antidepressants, benzodiazepines, and tricyclic antidepressants.- Benzodiazepines: A doctor may prescribe these for certain people with anxiety, but they can cause addiction. Diazepam, or Valium, is a common benzodiazepine.
- Antidepressants: These commonly help with anxiety, even though they also target depression. Serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), fluoxetine, and citalopram are examples.
- Tricyclic antidepressants: These are an older class of drugs that benefit most anxiety disorders other than obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Imipramine and clomipramine are two examples of tricyclics.
- monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)
- beta-blockers
- buspirone
Anxiety prevention
There are ways to reduce the risk of anxiety disorders. Remember that anxious feelings are a natural factor of daily life, and experiencing them does not always indicate the presence of a mental health disorder.
People may benefit from the following:
- reducing caffeine intake
- checking with a health professional before using over-the-counter or herbal remedies
- maintaining a balanced, nutritious diet
- keeping a regular sleep pattern
- regularly exercising
- avoiding alcohol, cannabis, and other recreational drugs
Conclusion
Anxiety is not a medical condition but a natural emotion that is vital for survival when an individual faces danger.
An anxiety disorder develops when this reaction becomes exaggerated or out-of-proportion to the trigger that causes it. There are several types of anxiety disorders, including panic disorder, phobias, and social anxiety.
Treatment involves a combination of therapy, medication, and counselling alongside self-help measures.
An active lifestyle with a balanced diet can help keep anxious emotions within healthy limits.
Anxiety Book Recommendations
Reflect your thoughts
Click on the icon to see all your thoughts in the Dashboard.
It’s highly recommended that you jot down any ideas or reflections that come to mind regarding Anxiety, including related behaviours, emotions, situations, or other associations you may make. This way, you can refer back to them on your Dashboard or Reflect pop-ups, compare them with your current behaviours, and make any necessary adjustments to keep evolving. Learn more about this feature and how it can benefit you.
References
- www.psy.unsw.edu.au/dass
- Lovibond, S.H. & Lovibond, P.F. (1995). Manual for the Depression Anxiety & Stress Scales. (2nd Ed.). Sydney: Psychology Foundation.
- https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/facts-statistics
- https://www.apa.org/topics/anxiety/
- https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders
- David J. Kupfer (2015). Anxiety and DSM-5. National Library of Medicine.
- https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/specific-phobia
- https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/agoraphobia/overview/
- https://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/selective-mutism/
- https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/social-anxiety-disorder-more-than-just-shyness
- Joshua Feriante et al. (2023). Separation Anxiety Disorder. National Library of Medicine.
- Suma P. Chand & Raman Marwaha (2022). Anxiety. National Library of Medicine.
